With the ever increasing populations around the world, it is not surprising that roadways are experiencing greater traffic from motor vehicles than ever before. Typically, increased traffic leads to increased commute times, increased fuel costs, and decreased efficiencies as workers spend increased amounts of time commuting. As well, increased costs of shipping items due to both time delays and fuel costs may lead to increased prices. These costs are exacerbated by vehicle accidents which cause further time delays and increased costs due to damaged vehicles, not to mention the increased potential for harm to individuals.
Vehicle accidents can occur for many reasons, and the inability for drivers to properly view their surroundings while operating their vehicles is of primary concern. Even in ideal driving conditions, mis-positioned side view mirrors can lead to drivers being unable to detect other vehicles/individuals they should otherwise be able to see, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Existing side view mirrors can be difficult to properly position in that the driver often merely adjusts them until they feel comfortable with what they can view in the mirrors. However, just because a driver is comfortable with the position of a mirror does not mean the position is proper. Improperly positioned mirrors can lead to “blind spots” in the driver's field of view meaning that the driver may not be able to view a vehicle in the in the mirror although it is nearby.
For example, referring now to FIG. 1A, if the operator 10 of a lead vehicle 12 positions the side view mirrors 14 of the vehicle 12 inwardly too much, the field of view 16 is also angled inwardly more than desired. As such, a “blind spot” 18 is formed which may lead to a nearby vehicle 20 falling outside the operator's field of view 16. Herein, a “blind spot” is defined as an area near a first vehicle 12 in which a second vehicle 20 may not be detected in the side view mirrors by the first vehicle's operator. Referring additionally to FIG. 1B, a blind spot 18 may also be created by angling the side view mirrors 14 outwardly more than is needed.
As such, various organizations and vehicle manufacturers sometimes offer guidelines on how to best position vehicle side mirrors. However, many drivers are not aware of this fact and, even if they are, it can still be a daunting task to position the mirrors. Therefore, it is desirable that improved apparatus and methodologies be developed to assist drivers in positioning their vehicle's side mirrors.
The present invention recognizes and addresses considerations of prior art constructions and methods.